WHO ARE YOU?

Those of you who listened to Jeri Bingham’s panel yesterday, on “Leading while Black and Introverted,” will have heard Jeri recounting her long-ago job interview with Brenda Williams (also on the panel), in which Brenda simply asked Jeri:

“Who are you?”

I was intrigued by this, bc it sounded like such a humanistic approach — so I asked Jeri to tell me the full story. Here it is, in her own words. 

"Yes, Brenda was the weirdest interview I've ever had in my life. Leo Burnett was a big global ad agency headquartered in Chicago and she was head of the brand strategy group called The Lab. We worked with Disney, McDonald's, Procter & Gamble, Motorola, everyone. I was seated in a room, then she comes in sits down and says "who are you?" I thought it was a trick question so I said "personally or professionally?" She said "You decide." I thought what the heck is happening here? And I was in my 30s and not as confident as I am now, but I just went for it and talked about my parents, growing up on the south side of Chicago, how I was creative and wanted to be surrounded by creative people to learn and grow. Then in mid-sentence before I could finish, she stands up and says "There's something special about you." Then she leaves the room. It was sooooo weird, but I felt it was good. The HR people came in and said Brenda said to hire me on the spot! It was so tough to get a job there. It was the agency to all the big consumer brands. No one believed the story about that interview and my new career in the world of branding and advertising, until they met Brenda! There's no one like her."

And that was THE most amazing job I've ever had. You can just imagine what she's like in the workplace. She is inspiring, creative, amazing, kind and a powerhouse. It was a privilege to be on a team to work with her, and also to see the world as we traveled internationally to Milan and London, and domestically to California and Florida for Disney several times a year. When working on a project for an engine company, they flew three of us to Mexico on a private jet! Although I was pretty low on the totem pole in the organization, I was never treated that way. Most importantly - in my 25-year career, I never learned so much and felt so valued as I did when working for her.”